Bonum Certa Men Certa

A Look at Microsoft's Uneven Layoff Patterns Around the Globe, More Likely Coming



Summary: The imbalanced Microsoft redundancies show financial thinking and journals raise questions about future redundancies

MORE LAYOFFS appear to be coming Microsoft's way, but it's truly revealing that the company strategises in a way that would anger senator Grassley. It favours inexpensive labour. Truth be told, many companies including Novell do such a thing, but this post is about Microsoft. Having spent some time browsing through the news, one would find that New Zealand's scale of Microsoft layoffs remains a secret.



Software giant Microsoft has confirmed that jobs will be cut in New Zealand.

The company would not comment on how many people would be made redundant.


Looking further up in Asia, it's only 1% who get laid off in India (5 times lower than the global estimate), which means that a lot more Microsoft employees will lose their jobs in 'expensive' countries:



Software giant Microsoft will lay off about 55 employees in India, which is one per cent of its Indian staff, as slowdown hits the sector, affecting business and profitability.


Here is a report from the Philippines and one from Singapore:

MICROSOFT'S local employees dodged the first bullet but could not escape the next, as the economic downturn continues to crimp technology spending by businesses and consumers.


No numbers are quoted there unfortunately. Compare to: Microsoft's cuts reach Triangle

Microsoft announced earlier this year that the recession would force its first mass layoffs, about 5,000 jobs. This week, the Redmond, Wash., company notified the N.C. Commerce Department that those cuts will include 55 positions at an outpost in North Raleigh.


Microsoft laid off the same number of people, namely 55 employees, in the huge nation of India (almost a billion citizens) and in one single outpost in North Raleigh. Hello, Red Hat? This is also covered here.

Microsoft cutting 55 jobs in Raleigh; Wells Fargo, American Express also cut jobs in N.C.



Three mass layoffs notices field with the North Carolina Department of Commerce last week show the continuing impact the economic recession is having on the high-tech and financial services sectors across North Carolina.


Over in the UK, Microsoft lays off more than twice as many people as in India and 5 times the rate.

5% of UK staff to go; CEO Steve Ballmer implies further job cuts may be necessary


Microsoft's special relationship with Ireland [1, 2] is showing:

Microsoft is seeking to cut 60 jobs in its Irish business, but it has also decided to create 40 new jobs here.


Are these layoffs symbolic? Regarding Microsoft's favours in Ireland (notably tax evasion) here are some new articles:



All the articles above mention Microsoft. More information about Microsoft's tax evasion can be found in [1, 2, 3].

Here is another new article: "Microsoft dishes out the pink slips. What does it mean for the rest of us?"

More Microsoft layoffs may be coming, according to the following new reports from the Wall Street Journal and Business Mirror:

i. Microsoft CEO: SAP Buy Speculation a Market Rumor

On the company's move to cut staff numbers, Mr. Ballmer said Microsoft may reevaluate its plans for job cuts, suggesting that more reductions could be in store if the U.S. economic downturn worsens.


ii. US job cuts slow; worst may be over

DuPont Co. and Microsoft Corp. this week said more staff reductions may be necessary. Part of the reduction in job losses in April was due to a jump in government jobs, spurred by the hiring about 60,000 people to help in the 2010 census.


It is very easy to forget that Microsoft did the equivalent of reducing another (additional) 10% in some areas where it cut wages in addition to people. As the Washington Post has just put it:

In March, staffing agencies that work for Microsoft agreed to a 10 percent reduction in their bill rate.


The Seattle press wrote a lot about these pay cuts at the time. There were also protests. If Microsoft is as profitable as it claims to be, then why so many reductions? Both products and employees are being axed.

Recent Techrights' Posts

Microsoft Shares Collapse Again (Down $101), Fifth Round of Microsoft Mass Layoffs in Less Than 100 Days in 2025
disaster
Windows Has Fallen to All-Time Lows in Switzerland Since GNU Celebrated 40th Anniversary (GNU’s 40th Birthday in Biel, Switzerland)
GNU/Linux has been doing well in Switzerland
One Person's Take on Jef Spaleta, the New Fedora Project Leader
"With a little searching, I wonder what else may be found regarding Microsoft."
 
Links 07/04/2025: More Cuts to Science Funding, Snail-speed Internet in Germany
Links for the day
Gemini Links 07/04/2025: Leasehold and Safe Gifts
Links for the day
In Some Countries, Laptops and Desktops Become a Dying Breed (Even Before Tariffs), Windows Has Nowhere to Go
expect more GNU/Linux on new and existing laptops
When the Credibility or 'Quality' of Clients Ceases to Matter, It's About Helping Rich Companies Like Microsoft Censor Critics (No Matter the Risks)
Bad ideas typically result in undesirable outcomes
UAE: GNU/Linux and Android at Record Levels, Windows at New Lows and Falling Below Apple
Even iOS is measured as bigger than Windows this month
Links 07/04/2025: Reddit Occupied (Social Control Media Controlled by Oligarchy), Demise of Globalisation Ongoing
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, April 06, 2025
IRC logs for Sunday, April 06, 2025
Links 07/04/2025: Leaving Gemini/smolweb and Mastodon Migrations
Links for the day
In Iraq, Windows 3.1 (Percent)
There's also zero
Links 06/04/2025: Flood, Cool Gemini Capsule, and Long Form
Links for the day
Links 06/04/2025: Science, Politics, and Pricier Goods
Links for the day
LLM Slop Has Virtually Killed unixmen.com and Many Other Sites
There's no longer any incentive to write real articles in there
Sharp Declines for Microsoft Windows in Bangladesh (Pop. ~175,000,000), Big Gains for GNU/Linux
Microsoft Windows has been having a really hard time in poor countries
Links 06/04/2025: Fake Reviews, Privatisation Heists, and "AI" as Smokescreen for Impoverishing Humans
Links for the day
Taking a Moral Stand Against Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) and the Worst Offenders/Facilitators
Any other stance would sidle with moral depravity or moral hazard
Links 06/04/2025: Many New Acts of Repression and Elements of Financial Depression
Links for the day
In Qatar GNU/Linux Rose From Under 1% to Over 4% in Two Years (or Over 5% If Counting ChromeOS)
It's a big improvement compared to what we saw last year
LLM Scrapers Are a Nuisance, But They're Also a Reminder It's Time to Make Your Site Static
Perhaps the best protection is the ability to endure surges
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, April 05, 2025
IRC logs for Saturday, April 05, 2025
Links 06/04/2025: Attacks on Education, Fake Patents, and Fake (Illegal) Patent Courts
Links for the day
France: Apple and Microsoft Down, GNU/Linux Up to New Record Levels
How will tariffs against France impact things in the coming months?
Open Source Initiative (OSI) Privacy Fiasco in Detail: What Was Reported to the California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA)
We hope to finish this whole lot within a week, then move on to election, lobbying etc.
Links 05/04/2025: Tariffs Backfiring, YouTuber Arrested, X/Twitter Set to be Fined
Links for the day
Gemini Links 05/04/2025: Offline is For Everyone, Copyright Colonialism, and More
Links for the day
Links 05/04/2025: TikTok Unsold (Still), Royal Society is Dead
Links for the day
Techrights Will Spend the Next Few Years Writing a Lot About Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs)
It's a growing problem
The State of EPO Staff's Health in Rijswijk or The Hague
We're going to cover the EPO some more later in the month
NVIDIA Corp Lost 36% of Its "Value" Since Cheeto Inauguration, But "Gen Hey Hi" (GenAI) is Totally Not a Bubble
Selling loads of unneeded hardware based on hysterical hype; like selling shovels during a Gold Rush
GNU/Linux Growing in East Asia, Windows by Default No More?
GNU/Linux is now on the shelf
Slopwatch: Anti-Linux 'Articles' From Linux-Hostile LLMs
It is almost always negative things and nobody can be held responsible for it except the charlatans prompting the LLMs
Links 05/04/2025: Fentanylware (TikTok) "Sale Looks Highly Imminent" (US), Stock Market Drowning in Panic
Links for the day
Gemini Links 05/04/2025: Moving Plants, No to Smartwatches, RAID Hygiene
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, April 04, 2025
IRC logs for Friday, April 04, 2025